Identity Construction

Gollum and the Hegemony of Oppression "The oppressed, instead of striving for liberation, tend themselves to become oppressors. The very structure of their thought has been conditioned by the contradictions of the concrete, existential situation by which they were shaped." (Pedagogy of the Oppressed, p.45) In the compartments of popular film and book series, the Lord of The Rings (LOTR) carves out its own privilege space in the cinematic landscape. Beyond its complex world-building, kaleidoscopic plots, and especially numerous characters, there exists one thing that renders instantly recognizable to any audience: Gollum's oddly utterance of "My precious.." Formerly known as Sméagol, he was a hobbit-like Stoor who once lived near the Vales of Anduin. His downfall begins when he murdered his cousin to seize the One Ring, which unnaturally prolonged his life while corrupting his mind and body. Consumed by obsession, he calls the Ring his "Precious." The life of Gollum is a journey of the Ring's unrelenting control in the pursuit of power, as well as the lingering humanity that seeps through the chains that binds his true will. Gollum's narrative arc embodies the complex hegemony of oppression, as theorized by Paulo Freire in his book entitled Pedagogy of the Oppressed (1968), building with some of the components of Marxism, undergoing the journey of self-alienation, false consciousness, and eventually transitioning as an oppressor themselves.

This study analyzes Atatürk-era foreign policy (1923-1938) through the lens of international relations theories, examining how Turkey positioned itself as an independent, balanced, and status quo actor in the post-World War I international system. The research employs analytical tools from realism, liberalism, and constructivism to provide a comprehensive theoretical framework. The findings demonstrate the multidimensional character of Atatürk's foreign policy: the balance of power policy aligns with realist theory, participation in international institutions supports liberal theory assumptions, and the construction of modern Turkish state identity confirms constructivist predictions. The study examines key diplomatic events from the Treaty of Lausanne to the Montreux Convention and Hatay's accession, identifying three distinct phases in Turkey's foreign policy evolution. Through historical, comparative, and content analysis methods, it reveals how Turkey successfully navigated complex international challenges while maintaining sovereignty and fostering regional cooperation. The research also analyzes how these historical foreign policy strategies continue to influence contemporary Turkish diplomacy, offering valuable insights for current policymaking.

El objetivo de esta investigación fue explorar los efectos de la mediación del lenguaje en la formación de identidad dentro del núcleo familiar de estudiantes que han vivido en los Estados Unidos por un periodo de tiempo y han regresado a vivir a México. Los participantes son seis estudiantes que actualmente están cursando un programa de pregrado en licenciatura en enseñanza del inglés en una universidad pública en el centro de México. Los hallazgos a partir de entrevistas, siguiendo un enfoque narrativo, parecen indicar que las experiencias de estos participantes como mediadores del lenguaje son altamente valoradas cuando deciden convertirse en profesores de inglés. La mayoría de ellos deciden convertirse en profesores porque quieren ayudar a otros a aprender el idioma y traen esas experiencias al salón de clases.

This study examines how African women use online spaces such as Twitter and Facebook as platforms of resistance, solidarity, and feminist activism. Focusing on hashtags like #BeingFemaleInNigeria and #MyDressMyChoice, it shows how women negotiate identity, challenge patriarchal discourse through language strategies such as code-switching, and create empowering narratives. While digital activism fosters new forms of agency, issues like the digital divide, cyberbullying, and censorship remain obstacles. The research highlights how African women are transforming virtual spaces into tools of social change and feminist struggle.

The qualitative case study on which this thesis is based was designed to investigate the relationship between migration and identity construction of three young people who immigrated as children and adolescents, two of them as refugees, from the former Yugoslavia to Germany and finally to Canada. The autobiographical narrative interviews of the manifold migration stories were mainly analyzed from the point of view of Vygotsky's Sociocultural Theory, which considers speech and thought in a close relation, to illustrate how identity must be understood as both individual and social in nature, and as a complex narrative action. The socialization processes in all countries of migration were viewed in order to investigate how the previous acculturation affects the cultural identity of the young people today and how it is unfolded in the story. The study reveals that these subjects with threefold migration position themselves between their lifeworlds which enable them not only to say where they belong to or which is their homeland but to answer the simple question "Who am I?" This is revealed by the way of their narration which contains a lot of contradictions. The individuals deal differently with their dynamic identity construction, while one of them seems to suffer under the instability of his identity, and of being different in all his lifeworlds, other subjects however can see advantages related to it. The way how they deal with this dynamics has a crucial influence on their view of their migrations today and consequently on their identity construction as a narrative action.

This article introduces a model of social architectonics, a framework tracing the evolution of societies through eight stages of identity construction, from tribal competition to fractured hypermodernity and adaptive post-traumatic cultures. Each stage reflects an attempt to balance material demands with symbolic coherence, what I term energetic-symbolic symmetry. Social transformation occurs when this balance collapses, forcing new experiments in collective belonging. By integrating classical sociology with cultural theory and cognitive science, the paper reframes history as a continuous struggle to design viable architectures of identity under shifting technological, demographic, and informational conditions.

Resumo Este artigo tem como principal objetivo abordar questões referentes a discurso e relações de poder na (re)construção da identidade profissional de professores de língua em uma Comunidade de Prática em um ambiente virtual, tendo em vista a transitoriedade, a complexidade e a dinamicidade do objeto investigado. Trata-se de uma pesquisa qualitativa de cunho etnográfico que apresentou como procedimento metodológico um estudo de caso envolvendo dois professores em formação e uma professora formadora. Os resultados evidenciam posicionamentos de poder nas interações dos participantes, o que justifica a necessidade de abordagem temática desse complexo processo de (re)construção identitária nos cursos de graduação, de forma a contribuir de maneira mais significativa com a formação reflexiva e identitária dos futuros profissionais do curso de Letras. Palavras-chave: Discurso. Poder. Comunidade de Prática. Formação de professor. Tecnologia.   This article aims to address issues of disco...

This paper examines identity constructions of young and educated Tibetans from a socio-cultural background of nomadic pastoralism in Amdo. It is based on qualitative research conducted between 2003 and 2008, comparing two generations of educated young people from a township in the Amdo region of Northern Sichuan in the People' s Republic of China. It examines developments in education policies and practices as well as economic developments from 2003 to 2008 and argues that identity constructions of school students and graduates need to be analysed against the background of such changes. Conceptualisations of nomad identity are linked to nomadic pastoralism, and when students return to their home communities after graduation or during school vacation, they do not fit easily into categories of being a nomad. This paper argues that in 2003, these graduates, who were a marginal group, underlined the usefulness of education for pastoral production by constructing an identity that showed them to be of use for the pastoral community. In 2008, increased school enrolment, changed attitudes towards education, and the emergence of new and alternative sources of income in pastoral regions alongside pastoralism have widened the context for identity constructions. These new attitudes are less dependent on pastoralism as the basis of identity, as acceptance of new orderings has come into place that see non-educated people as the practising pastoralists while the educated are accessing and expected to access different sources of income while remaining linked to pastoralism by their upbringing, culture, traditions and language.

This  study  explores  how  translanguaging,  humor,  and  identity  are  constructed through  signage  of  the  Philippine  fast-food  chain  Greenwich  in  Ilocos  Norte.  Fifty signage texts collected between March and June 2025 from two branches in shopping centers  (Robinsons  Ilocos  in  San  Nicolas  and  SM  City Laoag  in  Laoag  City)  were analyzed  using  qualitative  linguistic  landscape  and  discourse  analysis.  Five translanguaging  patterns  emerged:  lexical  integration,  syntactic  blending,  pick-up-line constructions, metaphorical fusion, and multimodal pairing. Taglish strategically delivers humorous and affective messages that resonate with Filipino youth culture. Drawing on translanguaging as a unified communicative repertoire, this study shows that bilingual signage indexes emotional tone, familiarity, and social belonging rather than  serving  a  purely  ornamental  role.  The  humor  includes  puns,  pop  culture references,  and  affective  exaggerations,  contributing  to  a  playful  yet  culturally grounded performance of identity. While the signage reflects a national urban youth identity, the absence of Ilokano in a predominantly Ilokano-speaking province raises questions of linguistic inclusivity. Commercial texts thus operate as translanguaging spaces  that  shape  consumer-brand  rapport  and  reflect  broader  social  norms  while selectively prioritizing national over provincial identities for market alignment.

Abstract: The aim of this study is to provide data regarding the treatment of foreign juveniles in the Italian justice system. The authors examined the records from juvenile detention centers and primary juvenile reception centers in Italy in order to gain a better understanding of how foreign minors are treated with respect to their Italian counterparts. Statistical analysis was then carried out and the results revealed many inequalities. The authors believe that it is important to create secondary and tertiary prevention services in order to decrease the likelihood of recidivism, and to promote the minor’s integration into the social fabric of their adopted country. Foreign minors are more frequently placed in jail than their Italian counterparts. The authors conclude that only through the development of a united partnership can a welcoming network be created: one that is able to pick up on the first signs of trouble that often confront foreign minors.

While a lot of attention has been paid to online branding and the construction and communication of a company’s identity via its website, there is only very little research that looks at the processes involved in these activities from a discourse analytical perspective. This article aims to address this gap by conducting a case study of innocent, a UK producer of fruit juices. Combining corpus analytical tools with discourse analytical techniques and considering both text and multimodal features, we explore some of the strategies through which innocent creates a set of inter-related and closely intertwined identities on its website, thereby constructing the company’s brand image. However, our findings also reveal that some of the company’s identity claims (especially in relation to being an inclusive and welcoming ‘family’) are relativised and to some extent contradicted by the discursive processes through which these claims are articulated.

The place of the abject, Julia Kristeva writes in Powers of Horror, is 'the place where meaning collapses.' 1 Abjection is that which 'disturbs identity, system, order… the inbetween, the ambiguous, the composite.' 2 'Woman's reproductive functions place her on

espanolEste estudio se enmarca en un contexto de comunicacion intercultural. Su objetivo es explorar el impacto de la cultura nacional del escritor y del receptor y, por otro lado, examinar la identidad profesional del escritor a traves de los ‘movimientos retoricos’ de una solicitud comercial. En este trabajo se compararon las solicitudes comerciales persuasivas escritas por estudiantes de universidades de Hong Kong China y Japon. Para la triangulacion de estos datos, se analizaron tambien las discusiones de grupo previas al proceso de redaccion de este tipo de textos, asi como los ensayos de reflexion producidos por estos estudiantes tras la redaccion de estos textos. Utilizando el marco del analisis de genero propuesto por Bhatia y Swales, en el presente estudio se identificaron un total de ocho movimientos retoricos en los mensajes electronicos de los dos corpus utilizados para este estudio. Los resultados sugieren que la cultura y la construccion de la identidad juegan un impor...

The implementation of information systems (IS) in organizations often triggers new situations in which users experience a disruption of existing work patterns and routines. Sensemaking becomes central in making users’ meanings explicit, serving as a foundation for further actions and interactions with the new technology. The purpose of this paper is to study how users make sense of new technologies by building on existing response repertoires. Empirically, we present findings from a study of an Electronic Patient Record (EPR) system implementation in two Danish hospital wards. Our findings illustrate: (1) how doctors’ and nurses’ existing routines are disrupted by the new technology, (2) how identity construction plays an important part in the users’ meaning construction process, and (3) how self-fulfilling prophecies are formed as a natural part of their sensemaking. The study contributes to existing literature by providing a detailed account of how users’ early sensemaking of a te...

This thesis delves into the nuanced exploration of the intersection between borders and identity, with a focused emphasis on the construct of Otherness in contemporary fiction. Through a comparative analysis of John Lanchester’s The Wall and Mohsin Hamid’s Exit West, this study seeks to unravel the intricate ways in which physical and metaphorical borders shape the construction of identity and influence the portrayal of Otherness in the characters’ narratives. The theoretical framework integrates concepts from literary studies, examining how these novels contribute to the ongoing scholarly conversation surrounding borders, identity formation, and the complex dynamics of Othering. By narrowing the focus to these specific aspects, this research aims to address a notable research gap and provide a comprehensive understanding of the contemporary human experience within the literary context. The findings promise to contribute valuable insights into the socio-political discourse surrounding borders, identity, and Otherness in contemporary literature.

Ela envolve explosivos na cintura e se explode. Não é uma morte e nem um suicídio. É a forma de Gaza declarar que é digna da vida. Durante quatro anos a carne de Gaza foi dilacerada em estilhaços que voam em todas as direções. Não é mágica e não é um milagre. É a arma de Gaza para se defender e exaurir o inimigo. Durante quatro anos, o inimigo ficou encantado com os seus sonhos, fascinado pelo seu flerte com o tempo, exceto em Gaza, porque Gaza está longe do seu povo e enfrenta o inimigo. Porque Gaza é uma ilha: cada vez que irrompe-e está sempre em erupção-dilacera a face do inimigo, destrói os seus sonhos e obstrui o seu contentamento com o tempo. Porque o tempo em Gaza é outra coisa: o tempo em Gaza não é um elemento neutro. Gaza não leva as pessoas a uma contemplação fria; em vez disso, ela os impulsiona a entrar em erupção e colidir com a verdade. O tempo ali não conduz as crianças diretamente da infância à velhice, mas faz delas homens no primeiro encontro com o inimigo. O tempo em Gaza não permite que você relaxe; pelo contrário, é um ataque a um meiodia escaldante porque os valores em Gaza são diferentes. Diferentes. Diferentes. Os únicos valores que uma pessoa ocupada pelo conquistador pode defender são os da resistência à ocupação. Esta é a única competição lá. A familiaridade com estes valores nobres e duros tornouse uma necessidade em Gaza. Seu povo não adquiriu essa necessidade por meio de livros, ou de breves cursos acadêmicos, ou de trombetas tocando propaganda, ou de canções patrióticas. Somente através da experiência Gaza aprendeu estes valores, e não por ações em prol da imagem ou autopromoção. Gaza não exibe as suas armas, seu zelo revolucionário ou o seu balanço patrimonial. Ela oferece sua carne amarga; ela segue sua própria vontade e derrama seu sangue. Gaza não domina a arte do orador. Gaza não tem garganta. Os poros de sua pele falam de suor, sangue e fogo. Como resultado, o inimigo a odeia o bastante para matála, tem medo o suficiente para cometer crimes e tenta afundála no mar, no deserto ou no sangue. Porém, os seus amigos e familiares amamna com um sentimento de vergonha que toca o ciúme, ou mesmo o medo, por vezes, porque Gaza é a lição selvagem e o modelo radiante tanto para inimigos como para amigos. Gaza não é a mais bonita das cidades. Sua costa não é mais azul que a de outras cidades árabes. Suas laranjas não são as melhores do Mediterrâneo. Gaza não é a cidade mais rica. (Peixes e laranjas e areia e tendas abandonadas pelos ventos, mercadorias contrabandeadas e mãos para alugar). E Gaza não é a mais refinada das cidades, nem a maior. Mas ela equivale à história de uma nação, porque é a mais repulsiva entre nós aos olhos do inimigoos mais pobres, os mais desesperados e os mais ferozes. Porque ela é um pesadelo. Porque ela é laranjas que explodem, crianças sem infância, homens idosos sem velhice e mulheres sem desejo. E porque ela é tudo isso, ela é a mais bela entre nós, a mais pura, a mais rica e a mais digna de amor. Nós somos injustos com ela quando procuramos seus poemas. Não desfiguremos a beleza de Gaza. O mais belo nela é que ela é livre da poesia em um tempo em que muitos de nós tentamos obter a vitória com poemas. Acreditamos em nós mesmos e nos regozijamos quando vimos que o inimigo nos deixou sozinhos para

The paper examines the cultural and literary discourses that surround the representation—and silencing—of the body in contemporary Hungarian literature, with a particular focus on Péter Nádas’s novel Párhuzamos történetek (Parallel Stories). The essay explores the paradox that, while the body is a central subject in both public and private spheres, its direct articulation remains fraught with taboos, ideological constraints, and discursive challenges. Drawing on cultural criticism, biopolitics, and literary theory (including the works of Catherine Belsey and Paul de Man), the analysis investigates how literature both reflects and subverts societal norms about corporeality, sexuality, and individuality. The paper argues that the “silent body” becomes a key site for negotiating identity and agency, as its very muteness is posited as the ultimate criterion of individuality. At the same time, the essay highlights how literary language, through its figurative and performative capacities, can challenge biopolitical regulations and propose new ways of articulating embodied experience. Ultimately, the study situates Hungarian literature within a broader cultural context, noting a historical reluctance to fully develop a literary language for sensual experience, and points to recent works that attempt to address and overcome this paradigmatic absence.

Learning a foreign language incorporates cognitive, communicative, emotional, and social aspects. Some of these aspects have to do with the structure of the language being studied; some others deal with social and psychological issues that influence the environment where the learning process takes place. This reflection paper addresses various emotional aspects that can bring up positive outcomes along the foreign language learning stages. Elements such as motivation, attitudes, levels of anxiety, acculturation, ethnicity, and personality are considered for this work. Readers should be able to find useful ideas for their ESL/EFL classes.

This article reports on a series of narrative events extracted from an action research methodology that explores teaching practices and pedagogical experiences to foster well-being in English language student-teachers. Although the study adopted an action research methodology, it does not account for the implementation of the pedagogical process per se. Instead, it resorts to its stages (i.e., planning, reflecting, and acting) to situate the narrative events regarding well-being. The study was conducted in a public university in Bogotá, Colombia, exploring the experiences of two student-teachers at the practicum stage. The purpose was to document narrative events concerning teaching practices and pedagogical experiences implemented to foster well-being. These experiences reveal that studentteachers engage in thought-affective pedagogies or pedagogies of well-being that coexist with traditional language pedagogy, although they are not cognitive-oriented pedagogies. Interestingly, student-teachers could engage in more human pedagogical practice to see the other not as a learning object but as someone who feels and requires attention and care.

This research explores the knotty relationship between sculpture creations and crime, focusing on the perceptions of Ghanaian sculpture users through the lens of the labelling theory. The labelling theory, a sociological perspective, posits that individuals become deviant when labelled as such by society, influencing their self-identity and behaviour. In the context of Ghana, where sculpture is a significant cultural and artistic expression, this study investigates how sculptures are perceived about criminal activities and societal norms. The research employs a qualitative approach, combining interpretivist's phenomenological research philosophy and descriptive research design with face-to-face interviews with sculpture users, artists, and community members, alongside direct observation to gather comprehensive data. The findings reveal that sculptures, often seen as cultural artifacts, can be misinterpreted or labelled as symbols of deviance due to societal prejudices and misconceptions. This mislabelling led to the stigmatization of both the art form and its creators, impacting their social standing and economic opportunities. In conclusion, the study calls for policy interventions and community engagement to promote a more inclusive and informed appreciation of sculpture as a vital component of Ghanaian heritage and identity.

This research explores the knotty relationship between sculpture creations and crime, focusing on the perceptions of Ghanaian sculpture users through the lens of the labelling theory. The labelling theory, a sociological perspective, posits that individuals become deviant when labelled as such by society, influencing their self-identity and behaviour. In the context of Ghana, where sculpture is a significant cultural and artistic expression, this study investigates how sculptures are perceived about criminal activities and societal norms. The research employs a qualitative approach, combining interpretivist's phenomenological research philosophy and descriptive research design with face-to-face interviews with sculpture users, artists, and community members, alongside direct observation to gather comprehensive data. The findings reveal that sculptures, often seen as cultural artifacts, can be misinterpreted or labelled as symbols of deviance due to societal prejudices and misconceptions. This mislabelling led to the stigmatization of both the art form and its creators, impacting their social standing and economic opportunities. In conclusion, the study calls for policy interventions and community engagement to promote a more inclusive and informed appreciation of sculpture as a vital component of Ghanaian heritage and identity.

"Revisionism and oral literature studies:  Traces of slavery’s memory in Creole oral literature"
This article explores how a comparative approach to literary and cultural studies can advance the field of postcolonial and revisionist studies. The analysis begins with the recognition of deficiencies in colonial archives and a reflection on the historical value of the documents and testimonies they contain, while acknowledging their (ongoing) influence on contemporary knowledge of the colonial and precolonial past. This influence is particularly evident in the ontological perception of slavery and its essentialist interpretation. The paper critiques this limited understanding by highlighting incongruous evidence of cultural and identity resistance, as well as the strategies of rebellion, escape and survival employed by enslaved Africans and Caribbeans. Through a multisource analysis of Caribbean oral literature, the study demonstrates how the artistic realm of the spoken word enabled the preservation of a sense of freedom, even in the face of colonial violence and European administrative control. The key interpretative tool is the concept of the trace, as articulated by Édouard Glissant. This concept sheds light on the unique workings of memory – its selectivity, transformative nature and the necessity for researchers to complement archival gaps with grassroots and literary sources.

This study explores the polyphonic nature of autobiographical narratives using Bakhtinian dialogism to examine how personal, cultural, historical, and ideological voices interact to construct identity. By analyzing autobiographies, the research highlights the role of polyphony, heteroglossia, chronotopes, and dialogic relationships in shaping dynamic, and multi-voiced texts. A qualitative approach reveals how linguistic diversity and temporal-spatial settings enrich these narratives, showcasing identity as a dialogic construct. The findings underscore dialogism's value in understanding autobiographies as complex engagements with history, culture, and selfexpression, contributing to literary, cultural, and linguistic studies.

Nous abordons dans le present article la subjectivite comme categorie abstraite de reference, avec un point de vue de linguiste et de didacticienne. Nous donnons d'abord des exemples d'enjeux societaux et academiques de l'etude de la subjectivite, puis nous explorons la subjectivite en linguistique, pour enfin aborder les implications epistemologiques et methodologiques de la prise en compte de la subjectivite, notamment a travers la psychophenomenologie. Nous ne presentons pas une etude de corpus, mais nous souhaitons montrer comment une categorie abstraite peut-etre heuristique a la fois pour la theorie et la pratique. Nous presentons en effet egalement des implications concretes tirees de notre pratique d'enseignante. S'il peut etre interessant, aujourd'hui, de traiter de la subjectivite comme categorie abstraite, c'est aussi parce qu'au-dela de son abstraction, cette categorie est liee a des enjeux societaux et academiques. Les implications et enj...

Ce travail de recherche tend a la fois a developper une modelisation, ainsi qu’a mettre en evidence les effets psychiques therapeutiques, d’un Dispositif d’accompagnement psychologique de groupe qui propose d’utiliser la mediation des soins socio-esthetiques dans la prise en charge de patientes rencontrees en oncologie gynecologique. C’est ainsi que nous proposons en premier lieu de developper la presentation du fil cosmetologique qui correspond au deroulement du dispositif de recherche, ainsi que celle du cosmetogramme qui est la grille d’observation construite afin de faciliter dans un deuxieme temps le reperage des processus psychiques en jeu dans les ateliers. La presentation clinique de nos groupes de patientes nous permet d’illustrer a la fois le parcours des patientes dans le dispositif de recherche et l’utilisation du cosmetogramme.Nous soutenons que les specificites de ce Dispositif original, dans le paysage des soins hospitaliers tels qu’ils sont proposes aux femmes attein...

ducing formal organizational separations between their members, replicating inside the organization the boundaries that reflect external conflict. An example of such organizational devices are provided by Chinese walls. Using a network study of a New England corporate law firm, I look into the black box of such organizations and show that it is impossible for members to respect such Chinese walls unless they are heroes. The question arising from this analysis is, therefore, whether or not it is time for such professional firms to shrink to greatness. If members cannot be expected to be heroes, should their institutions not be redesigned so as to prevent unethical behavior without counting on their heroism? Florindo: Tu hai servito due padroni nel medesimo tempo? Truffaldino: Sior si, mi ho fatto sta bravura. Son intrà in sto impegno senza pensarghe; m'ho volesto provar. Ho durà poco, è vero, ma almanco ho la gloria che nissun m'aveva ancora scoverto, se da per mi no me descovriva per l'amor de quella ragazza. Conflicts of interest are a classical ethical preoccupation for many professions: for lawyers who successively or concurrently represent potentially competing clients; for medical doctors who, for instance, have to manage the transfer of organs, or own a laboratory in which they send their clients for medical tests; for industrial engineers who move from one employer to another and have to sign agreements preventing them from working for the competition on the same matters for at least two to five years; for U.S. bankers who, for many years, were not allowed to underwrite securities, and so on. The problem looms large when conflicts of allegiance divide actors invested with some discretion and trust.

After Pierre Nkurunziza ran for a third term in office in May 2015, even though the Arusha Agreement allowed for a maximum of two, Burundi was in the midst of a new political and military crisis. After weeks of violent demonstrations and a coup d'état, the incumbent president was re-elected and the country became mired in violence. This paper is a study 'from below' where it proposes an analysis of this Burundian political process that is a priori impossible to understand. It seeks to understand why political action in Burundi and acts of violence on a daily basis are so difficult to analyse by focusing on one notion: 'ensilence', by trying to understand the different logics of intention of the actors. This study highlights the contours of an unseen form of silence. A phenomenon is observed where power is certainly authoritarian, but also failing and therefore not omnipotent, leaving room in its interstices for a reappropriation by the populations of authoritarian excesses. 

The paper hypothesises a form of authoritarianism exercises ‘from below’ by peers. In Burundi, it is within society where one can find a ‘Souverain Moderne' (Modern Sovereign, Tonda: 2005) in the form of violent relationships between individuals, a culture of peer ensilence, paranoia, etc. The reading of the logic of oppression here through a ‘top-down’ logic is not fruitful, surveillance takes place through peers and in the interstices. This shows that the threat most often comes from the (closest) relations to oneself, which leads to feelings of betrayal within the population, but which also leads to a logic of silence, self-censorship and great paranoia. ed in order to promote a positive long-term impact on the quality of teaching and research.

Coursebooks used in English language teaching play a significant role for language learners. One way of determining whether the current status of English in language teaching, that is, English as a lingua franca (ELF), is taken into account in language teaching pedagogy is to analyze coursebooks. This study aims to determine how listening, speaking, and video sections of two intermediate-level coursebooks used in a preparatory program of a private university in Turkey are approached regarding ELF principles in the teaching of English. Based on qualitative and quantitative content analysis, this descriptive research was conducted using Rose and Galloway's (2019) framework for coursebook analysis. The findings demonstrate that in one of the coursebooks, ELF interaction was higher than in the other regarding listening recordings. There was only one video representing an ELF interaction in both coursebooks. RP (Standard British English) was the core reference in the listening files and videos. Crosscultural and global topics were chiefly included in the speaking tasks; however, there was a lack of multi-cultural topics addressed within the books. Speaking activities included mainly the strategy of turn-taking and only two clarification communicative strategies but guided speaking tasks were in contradiction with ELF features. The findings offer practical implications for coursebook designers/writers, curriculum designers, and language teachers.

Despite a growing literature regarding female gang membership, little is known about the ways in which gang-affiliated women negotiate the boundaries of gang membership. The current study, based on semi-structured interviews with twenty-four formerly gang-affiliated Chicana women involved with a prominent gang prevention/intervention organization, sought to understand how these women negotiated their interactions and understood their identity within the gang. Findings suggest that these women and the gangs in which they operate recreate broader gender norms that affect their standing and social mobility within the gang.

This chapter delves into the complexities of racial and ethnic identity attributions and verifications. It emphasizes how our choices for personal identities are influenced and constrained by dominant societal discourses. The identities we assign to others also follow this pattern and rely on recognition by others to be effective. A specific case study is examined: the discourse surrounding Spanish actor Antonio Banderas and his 2020 Oscar nomination, in which he was labeled as "a person of color" by the U.S. mainstream press amid the #OscarsSoWhite issue. This case prompted discussions on both sides of the Atlantic, including an op-ed in Spain's El País, questioning whether Banderas could be considered a "White man." The rarity of such discussions in Spain, despite its colonial history and increasing diversity, highlights how certain racial distinctions may be insignificant in one context but significant in another. To analyze this discourse, 2,500 user-generated comments from the discussion triggered by the op-ed were compiled. A corpus-assisted discourse study approach was used, combining quantitative methods from corpus linguistics and qualitative methods, including thematic analysis. The study also drew from various theoretical perspectives, including identity models, raciolinguistics, and colorism in former European colonies. This research provides valuable insights into the attribution and verification of racial identity and the broader sociocultural influences on these processes.

This paper explores the construction of Latino identity in Spain. The term Hispanic (Latino later became the label of choice) was added to the US census in the 1970s, initially as an ethnic category, but it has undergone a process of racialization, making Latinos a distinct racial group in the US. The concept of Latinidad has been extensively studied in the US context. This paper adopts a netnographic approach to examine how Latinidad is constructed in Spain. To conduct this qualitative research, NVivo was used to analyze a reference corpus of over 5,000 online comments triggered by a video discussing the situation of Latinos in Spain that had been posted on YouTube by El País. The study employs a multidisciplinary approach, drawing from fields like identity, impoliteness, and raciolinguistics. It particularly focuses on perceptions of visible minorities and attitudes towards language varieties different from European Spanish.

Celem artykułu jest przedstawienie tego, jak Polacy z Ukrainy postrzegają umocnienie ukraińskiej świadomości narodowej w rezultacie rosyjskiej agresji. W badaniach zastosowano metodę indywidualnych wywiadów pogłębionych (IDI), które przeprowadzone zostały w czerwcu 2024 roku. Głównymi tematami rozmów były: pamięć, kultura, język oraz różnice między narodami. Respondenci wskazywali na okrucieństwo Rosjan jako główny temat przyszłych opowieści o wojnie i wyzwoleniu z zależności od Rosji. Właśnie ta wojna przekształca ukraiński nacjonalizm w inkluzywny patriotyzm. Badani zauważali także, że symbol flagi czerwono-czarnej zyskuje w świadomości Ukraińców nowe znaczenie jako wyraz patriotyzmu i determinacji w walce o niepodległość. Wzrost nacjonalistycznych postaw wiąże się z odrzuceniem języka rosyjskiego na rzecz ukraińskiego, co świadczy o rosnącej suwerenności kulturowej Ukrainy. Obecna wojna Rosji przeciwko Ukrainie jest katalizatorem przekształceń w ukraińskim nacjonalizmie, wzmacnia i konsoliduje ukraińską tożsamość narodową ukierunkowaną na współpracę ze światem niezależnym od Rosji.

Das literaturhistorischen Fragment aus dem Essay "Venedigstoffe"  (2001) des Lyrikers Thomas Kling spricht im übertragenen Sinne von  „Dante-Masken“ als mehr oder minder fehlgeleiteten Versuchen der Identifikation mit dem übergroßen Dichtervorbild. Die Überlegungen zu diesem Fragment wollen weniger zur Rezeption von Klings Rezeption bestimmter Dante-Rezeptionen führen, als vielmehr die Dante-Masken und ihre Träger auf der Bühne der Imitation beleuchten. Dazu werden wir Klings Masken-Metapher wörtlich nehmen und vortragsgemäß Bilder von Masken und Maskenträgern im engeren und weiteren Sinne ansehen und erörtern.  Die folgende Spurensuche soll nicht entlarven oder desillusionieren, sondern vielmehr einige der erstaunlichsten Dante-Rezeptionen in Erinnerung rufen.

International news articles published in various languages are usually tailored by the editors for their target readers in the corresponding language. On the one hand, the transformations made to the textual structure of news are intended to offer better accessibility to the information and make it more relevant to the readers in the target culture. On the other hand, the domestication of news provides compatibility with social attitudes, cultural background and shared knowledge of language users. Many such adjustments are made to the structures related to national and cultural identities and their construction. This paper will consider rhetorical and linguistic devices of discursive identity construction in the media coverage of events related to the EU migration crisis in four European languages (English, French, German and Spanish), as well as analyze their potential role in framing public opinion towards the migrant crisis.

Günümüzde dijital çağın etkisiyle, ilişki kurma biçimleri önemli bir dönüşüm geçirmiş, geleneksel ilişki dinamikleri yerini dijital platformlar aracılığıyla başlayan ve gerçek hayatta devam eden hibrit ilişkilere bırakmıştır. Bu süreçte, çevrim içi arkadaşlık uygulamalarının yaygınlaşması, bireylerin dijital benlik sunumları üzerinden kendilerini idealize ederek ilişkilerini başlatıp sürdürebildikleri yeni bir ilişki modelinin oluşmasına zemin hazırlamıştır. Bu çalışmada çevrim içi arkadaşlık uygulamalarının bireylerin benlik sunumlarına ve ilişki dinamikleri üzerine etkisi incelenmiş; çevrim içi arkadaşlık uygulamalarının yaygınlaşmasıyla birlikte, sanal ilişkilerin gerçek hayattaki ilişkilere etkisi bağlamında belirgin farklar bulunduğu ortaya konulmuştur. Araştırmada, çevrim içi arkadaşlık uygulamalarından Bumble’ı aktif olarak kullanan ya da hayatının bir döneminde kullanmış olan 12 katılımcı ile yapılan yarı yapılandırılmış derinlemesine görüşmeler gerçekleştirilmiş olup bu verilerin analiz edilmesi sonucunda araştırmanın bulgularına ulaşılmıştır. İnsan ilişkilerindeki değişen dinamiklerin anlaşılarak, dijital çağda sağlıklı ilişkilerin teşvik edilmesi için önemli bir kaynak olabilecek bu çalışmada; benlik sunumu kuramsal çerçevesinden Goffman’ın dramaturjik yaklaşımı, Cooley’in ayna benliği ve Mead’in genelleştirilmiş öteki teorileri ele alınmıştır. Çevrim içi platformların, insanların kendilerini idealize etme fırsatını sağladığı bir platform olarak; bireylerin kendilerini en iyi şekilde temsil etme eğiliminde oldukları, geleneksel flört dinamiklerinin yerini daha spontane ve bağlayıcı olmayan ilişkilerle değiştirdiği görülmüştür. Özellikle, çevrim içi arkadaşlık uygulamalarının, geniş bir partner havuzu sunarken, ilişkilerin yüzeyselleşmesine ve geçici olmasına neden olabildiği; potansiyel partnerlerle hızlı ve kolay bir şekilde tanışma fırsatı sunarken ayrılma gibi süreçleri de değiştirmekte ve hızlandırmakta olduğu sonucuna ulaşılmıştır. Bu çıkarımların ışığında, dijital iletişim ve ilişki kurma süreçlerinin karmaşıklığını anlamak ve bu alandaki pratik ve sosyal etkileri değerlendirmek için gelecekte daha fazla araştırma ve uygulama ile belirli alt konuların daha derinlemesine incelenmesi önerilmektedir.

O conceito de auto-reflexão como eixo de um currículo alternativo para a formação de professores foi desenvolvido a partir do debate de Adorno (2000) a respeito dos tabus que envolvem a profissão de ensinar. No caso dos professores, os tabus são criados no processo social da formação da nossa profissão 3 e podem ser entendidos como "filtros" adquiridos ao longo das experiências escolares, que podem agir de duas formas: organizar o aprendizado de teorias pedagógicas e influenciar a opção de estratégias adotadas em seu conturbado cotidiano de vida e trabalho. Por sua vez, a auto-reflexão consiste na elaboração pelos professores (em formação) dessas experiências primitivas. É um processo de esclarecimento interno, do autodesvelamento dos pontos de contato entre a história da 1 Doutor em Educação. Professor-Adjunto da UERJ/FEBF. Esse trabalho foi elaborado no interior da pesquisa Crônica de uma morte anunciada? financiada pelo CNPq e pela UERJ/PROCIÊNCIA.

The present paper explores Alice Walker's Possessing the Secret of Joy in an attempt to highlight the importance of the establishment of a well-defined identity as the crucial step in the life of Tashi, a victim of genital mutilation. She becomes whole and healthy once she finds a voice and remakes her severed ties with the black community. Her individual acts of rebellion are complemented with collective political action against genital mutilation. Butler's view, agency is a restorative energy which works against fragmentation and opens a new possibility for psychic healing as the essential path to the formation of an individual identity. The paper explores the path taken by the novel's female protagonist to validate her right as an active agent and defy the objectifying assumptions which deprive women of the right to be treated as human subjects. The long-held womanist aspirations shared by Tashi and her fellow sufferers matched by the desire to restore the lost agency is the only hope given to black women to establish their own voice. The protagonist's final healing is thus achieved through the healthy interaction between individual as well as collective acts of rebellion: individual agency accompanied by political and social transformation.

The French Lieutenant's Woman by John Fowles is often hailed as a quintessential example of metafiction—a work of fiction that self-consciously addresses the devices of fiction itself. Set in the Victorian era, the novel tells the story of the complex relationship between Charles Smithson, a gentleman and amateur paleontologist, and Sarah Woodruff, a woman ostracized by society due to her presumed affair with a French lieutenant.

What makes Fowles' novel metafictional are several key elements:

Narrative Intrusion: The narrator frequently breaks the fourth wall, directly addressing the reader and discussing the process of storytelling. This creates a sense of distance, reminding readers that they're engaging with a constructed narrative.

Multiple Endings: The novel famously offers three different possible endings, which challenges the notion of a singular, definitive conclusion in a narrative, and instead, reflects on the nature of storytelling and choice.

Historical Context and Modern Commentary: While the novel is set in the 19th century, Fowles peppers the narrative with modernist commentary, juxtaposing Victorian norms against contemporary viewpoints, thus creating a dialogue between past and present.

Character Autonomy: Fowles portrays the characters as having a degree of autonomy, suggesting they "choose" their paths within the confines of the story. This approach further blurs the lines between fiction and reality.

By employing these techniques, John Fowles not only tells a compelling historical romance but also invites readers to reflect on the nature of narrative, the role of the author, and the blurred boundaries between history and fiction. This innovative approach positions The French Lieutenant's Woman as a seminal work in the canon of metafiction.

Currently, the assistive technologies (ATs) market is underdeveloped, which limits individual choices. Many people appear reconciled to using available products that, at best, match functionalities to compensate for physical deficiencies. Yet people express a desire for personalized, elegant, discreet and bold artefacts that match their lifestyle and provide opportunities for self-expression. This study adopts a materiality-inspired methodology to explore ATs and to elicit insights into the perceptions and emotions of the study participants towards them. A comparative exploratory study between the UK and Taiwan has been conducted to explore diverse and cross-cultural perceptions. The findings suggest that the design of ATs needs to go beyond traditional considerations, such as price and compliance, and instead focus on how these products enhance users' positive sense of self. This in return may increase the rate of successful adoption of ATs in everyday life.

Les langues sont de puissants symboles d'identité et contribuent à tracer des frontières entre les individus et les groupes, mais l'inverse est également vrai : les individus ou les groupes circonscrivent et classent les langues dans le cadre de leur construction identitaire. De plus, définir sa propre maîtrise d'une langue, par exemple la minorer, est un moyen de construction identitaire et de négociation. Dans cet article, nous nous concentrons sur la construction discursive de l'identité des Grecs ayant le turc comme langue d'origine. Nous montrons comment les macro-choix (par exemple, l'abandon d'une langue) ou les micro-choix, comme les choix linguistiques dans une phrase, constituent l'agentivité des individus et des groupes dans leur dialogue avec les discours dominants.

ENGLISH : This research is aimed to identify the politeness and identity reflection on theses acknowledgment of undergraduate students of Maulana Malik Ibrahim State Islamic University of Malang. To investigate the politeness on theses acknowledgment, the researcher applies the concept of rapport management model proposed by Spencer-Oatey (2008). To analyze the identity reflection on theses acknowledgement, the current research applies the concept of identity proposed by Stryker and his colleagues (e.g. Stryker, 1980; Serpe& Stryker, 1987) and Gee’s (1997). This research applies the descriptive qualitative method, in which the intended result of the research is the brief analysis of description of the politeness and the identity reflection on the theses acknowledgment written by undergraduate students of Maulana Malik Ibrahim State Islamic University of Malang. From the analysis and findings, it can be resulted that the writers of acknowledgment tend to apply the model of management...

In a world of continuous migration, super-diverse cities consist of a multitude of migrants and non-migrants from a variety of cultural backgrounds. Yet one characteristic they all have in common is the place where they currently live. In addition, both groups are active users of social media, especially the young. Social media provide platforms to construct and negotiate one's identity-particularly the identity related to where one lives: urban identity. This article presents the results of a survey study (N = 324) investigating the relationships between social media engagement and identity construction among migrant and non-migrant adolescents in the super-diverse city of Rotterdam, the Netherlands. It was found that urban identity was significantly higher for migrants than non-migrants. Certain aspects of social media engagement predicted urban identity in combination with social identity. Finally, social media engagement was found to be positively related to group self-esteem.

This article introduces a novel perspective on consciousness as a dynamic interplay of information, emphasizing self-projection and the multilayered nature of reality. By integrating principles from neuroscience, information theory, and philosophy, this framework redefines consciousness as an emergent phenomenon rooted in the organization, storage, and transformation of information. The model addresses its predictive, reflective, and interpretative functions, offering implications for artificial intelligence, neurobiology, and existential philosophy. This approach advances our understanding of consciousness, bridging interdisciplinary gaps and providing practical applications.